Hidden Agenda Hero

Not quite a Wild Card, the Hidden Agenda Hero is almost certainly on the side of good. He regularly helps The Hero, expecting nothing in return, demonstrates definite good-guy behavior while avoiding actions which would denote a bad guy...and yet he never explicitly states what his motivation is for doing so, and there's evidence that he's up to something the Heroes don't know about.

Unlike the Aloof Ally who may also be a mysterious hero, the Hidden Agenda Hero is far from being aloof and instead regularly interacts with The Hero and his gang, either being a member of their group or readily accessible when The Hero needs help. When eventually asked why he or she his assisting them, he often covers it up with Blatant Lies or something believable but untrue, if he doesn't manage to squeeze out of answering altogether. Usually he expects, or asks, that you simply trust him. What he is really up to and why he hides it differs from character to character, but common reasons involve not wanting to get others involved in his problems, having sensitive plans which would be disrupted or in danger were the heroes to know about them, or for some reason simply not being at liberty to speak of it.

Examples:

Urahara Kisuke from Bleach. There is almost never any doubt that he is on Ichigo's side, helps him constantly and is accepted by the Heroes as a valuable friend and ally, but at any given point in the show we almost never know what he's really up to.

Verin from The Wheel of Time falls under this trope. Until Book 11, The Gathering Storm, Verin was always a suspicious character, with a number of indications that there was more to her than met the eye, but she always seemed to be working for the Light, and not for the Dark One. The true secret of her character is revealed in Book 11.

Denis Arilan in the Deryni works. As a member of the Camberian Council, he keeps them informed of events around the Haldane royal family. The Council wishes to exercise control over the Haldanes and the transmission of the Haldane powers. Arilan, with his thorough arcane training and a seat on the King's Council, is their inside man for things like the ritual Kelson organizes to trigger some of his uncle's powers in The King's Justice. Kelson and his courtiers resent the high-handedness the Council displays, and once they know of Arilan's position they don't entirely trust him. The other Councilors have reason to be wary of Arilan as well; he occasionally takes Kelson's side against them.

In The Order of the Stick,Hayley comes off as incredibly greedy and even seems to cultivates that image, while hiding the fact that she's saving her money to pay a ransom on her father. (Played With, though: while she does intend to use the money to free him, she always planned to just steal it back afterward.)

Shayera "Hawkgirl" Hol in Justice League. It is never exactly explained what a Thanagarian is doing on Earth and is quickly forgotten thanks to her contributions to the League's success. However, it is eventually revealed that she is an advance spy for the Thanagarian military.

I think Verin from The Wheel Of Time is pretty much exactly this trope. Until Book 11, The Gathering Storm, Verin was always a suspicious character, with a number of indications that there was more to her than met the eye, but she always seemed to be working for the Light, and not for the Dark One. The true secret of her character is revealed in Book 11, and will not be repeated here in order to avoid spoiling those who have not yet read the series up to Book 11. Suffice it to say, The Reveal is quite a shocking one.

Denis Arilan in the Deryni works. As a member of the Camberian Council, he keeps them informed of events around the Haldane royal family. The Council wishes to exercise control over the Haldanes and the transmission of the Haldane powers. Arilan, with his thorough arcane training and a seat on the King's Council, is their inside man for things like the ritual Kelson organizes to trigger some of his uncle's powers in The King's Justice. Kelson and his courtiers resent the high-handedness the Council displays, and once they know of Arilan's position they don't entirely trust him. The other Councilors have reason to be wary of Arilan as well; he occasionally takes Kelson's side against them.

Shayera "Hawkgirl" Hol in Justice League. It is never exactly explained what a Thanagarian is doing on Earth and is quickly forgotten thanks to her contributions to the League's success. However, it is eventually revealed that she is an advance spy for the Thanagarian military.

Not sure about that. Mysterious Backer seems to be a species of Big Good, whereas this seems to be someone of a rank/authority/power/ability closer to that of those s/he helps. Related tropes no doubt, but I sense a distinction here.

King Of Fighters: The hero for KOF 2003-XIII, Ash, never seems to have any reasoning for competing in the tournaments. Whatever his goal is, he needed to beat up Those from the Past (the villain group in the game) and steal the Sacred Treasures off Chizuru and Iori. In the last game it's finally made clear: Ash is revealed to be the Big Bad Saiki's descendant, and Ash wants to stop him from getting the Sacred Treasures, as well as to ensure his adopted sister Elizabeth is safe. Ash saves the day by making Saiki trapped in the present, which kills both him and Ash with time paradox.

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